The present invention is directed to a frame face display and shipping container that has dual use of shipping and display characteristic.
In shipping and displaying products, particularly in a retail setting, it is desirable to have a container which is easy to pack, sturdy and fully enclosed for protection of contents during storage and shipping, and also suitable for display at a retail site. For example, it is beneficial to have a container which allows a customer at a retail site to easily reach into the container and remove products for purchase. In such an application, it is desirable to have a printed area on the container which advertises or identifies the product. During storage and shipment of a container, it is important that a printed area be protected so that it remains attractive to the consumer at the retail location. Of course, the access opening through which a consumer can access the goods must also be closed during shipment and storage to prevent spilling of the product out of the container. Previously, the hand-set display container was a two-piece design; a heavy-weight glued-tube outer and a light-weight tight-fitting 3-sided flanged U-shaped paperboard that had to be hand-inserted. The problems with this design were that the outer tears easily during the removal of the front tear-out panel that left jagged edges and often partially unfolded, and the time or labor or expense to insert the U-shaped paperboard.
There have been attempts in the past to manufacture a one-piece displayable container using perforated tear out panels, but these approaches have encountered several problems. For example, the perforations in previous attempts at such a design are; generally unprotected and located in areas that are highly susceptible to damage during shipping. This susceptibility to damage has led to premature failure of the perforations or has resulted in the use of stronger perforations requiring excessive force or tools to open.
Further, a perforated window, in itself, does not provide protection to any outside surfaces of a container, resulting in the potential for unattractive packages at retail sites due to gouges or scuffing from the distribution environment. Other attempts at creating a useful one-piece displayable container have used complex geometric designs requiring special equipment to manufacture, erect, and fill.
Therefore, it is desirable to provide a container for the shipping and display of products which can be easily manufactured on standard manufacturing and erecting equipment, and which further provides for easy alteration for display upon reaching point of sale and for convenient consumer access to the container contents.